People offer flowers and condolences for Japanese victims who have been confirmed dead at the Japanese plant construction company JGC headquarters in Yokohama,. / Kazuhiro Nogi, AFP/Getty Images

by USA TODAY

by USA TODAY

TOKYO (AP) - Two more Japanese citizens have been confirmed to have died during a hostage crisis last week in Algeria, the Japanese government confirmed, bringing the total number to nine. One Japanese worker remains missing.

The victims worked for a Japanese engineering company, JGC Corp., at a natural gas plant in the Sahara Desert. Seven other Japanese workers for the company survived the hostage-taking.

Islamist militants seized the gas field and held scores of foreigners from a number of countries hostage for four days until Algerian special forces stormed the plant Saturday. Algeria's prime minister has said that at least 37 hostages and 29 militants were killed.

"Using violence is not forgivable whatever the cause," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said Wednesday evening after confirming that officials found the bodies of the two Japanese among a group of unidentified victims. "We strongly condemn terrorist activities."